Ms. Jessup
English I
Room 225
English I Syllabus
Welcome to English I! This course is designed to give you the fundamental skills and knowledge you will
need to be successful as you progress through the upper levels of English in your high school career.
You will study all different kinds of literary genres, from American poetry to Shakespearean drama. You
will also become familiar with literary devices; you will learn how to recognize and analyze them for
their effect, as well as how to use them in your own writing. There will be a strong emphasis on
grammar and the mechanics of writing in this class, which will serve to strengthen your skills as a writer.
Literary Overview (subject to change)
Semester I
Semester 2
1st Quarter
Narrative Structure and Short Stories
Heroes, Gods and Monsters
Expository Essay
3rd Quarter
Romeo and Juliet
Poetry
Expository Essay
2nd Quarter
The Odyssey
Narrative and Expository Essay
4th Quarter
Research
Fahrenheit451
Expository Essay
Materials Needed (Bring to class EVERY DAY)
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Blue or black pens (preferable to pencils)
Paper (college-ruled)
A notebook or binder with dividers for the following sections:
1. Agenda
2. Literature Notes
3. Grammar Notes
4. Vocab
Ms. Jessup
English I
Room 225
*A note on textbooks:
YOU WILL HAVE READING HOMEWORK. Not every day, maybe not even every week, but you will have
it. Always do your reading homework. If you are not caught up on the reading, you will have a VERY
hard time with the assignments.
We will be going down to the office as a class to get books checked out to you. DO NOT LOSE YOUR
BOOK. IT IS VERY EXPENSIVE AND YOU WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR IT. If you are absent the day we go as
a class, it will be YOUR responsibility to check out a textbook from the office. You will need your ID to
do this, and you should do it as early in the year as possible. If you do not check out a book, YOU WILL
STILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE READING HOMEWORK. There are other ways to access the book (more
on that later), but the easiest, simplest thing to do is just get one yourself.
Grades
Major grades count for 60% of your grade, and Minor grades count for 40% of your grade. Each quarter
you will have at least three Major grades, and at least nine Minor grades (probably more).
Late Work: If an assignment is not turned in on time, it will be entered as “missing” in the grade book
and will be counted as a zero until it is turned in.
Test re-takes: If you want to re-take a test, you must attend at least one tutorial session with me first.
You may also be required to complete an extra assignment. The point of this is so that you can show
me that additionally learning has taken place before you are allowed to make up your grade. The test
you re-take will not be identical to the first one you took. All re-takes will be taken during designated
tutorial times.
Daily Agenda/Absent Work
Every day when you enter my room, the day’s agenda will be displayed on the overhead. You will copy
this agenda in the appropriate section of your notebook every day. This will help you stay organized and
on top of things, especially as homework assignments and reminders will be included in the daily agenda
as well.
All of the daily agendas will be recorded in the ABSENT WORK BINDER on my desk. If you are absent, it
will be YOUR responsibility to check what you missed the day(s) you were gone, and to collect any
assignments from me before or after class.
Vocab
New vocab will be introduced about once a week, and we will have regular quizzes over these words.
There will be five words each time. On the quizzes, you will not only have to match each word with its
Ms. Jessup
English I
Room 225
definition, but you will also have to write a MEANINGFUL SENTENCE for each word. I will go over what
this means in greater detail when we start doing vocab.
Book Reports
Every quarter, you will read a book of your choosing outside of class and complete a book report using a
format I give you. These will be due toward the end of the quarter. These will count as Major grades
and MUST BE COMPLETED OUTSIDE OF CLASS.
Classroom Expectations
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As a general rule, don’t listen to music during my class, especially when I am talking or during
class discussions. There may be times when it will be acceptable for you to listen to music while
working quietly, but please DO NOT assume this is true unless I specifically give you permission.
The same thing goes for phones—if you keep your phone on your desk and you check it briefly
every once in a while, that will probably be fine with me. However, if your phone use becomes
a distraction to yourself or others, then I will ask you to put it away. If I have to tell you to put
any electronic device away more than once, I WILL take it.
Be respectful of everyone at all times.
Be respectful of all RHS property. This includes desks. Do not draw on them. If I catch you
drawing on a desk, YOU will clean it.
Remain seated until you are dismissed.
Always sit in your assigned seat, unless I tell you otherwise.
Only use language appropriate for school. No cussing, derogatory, or discriminatory language of
any kind will be tolerated.
No bullying of any kind.
Always follow all instructions the first time they are given.
Consequences
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1st offense: warning
2nd offense: seat change/ phone call home
3rd offense: detention/ phone call home
4th offense: conference with parent/ counselor/ office referral
*Some offenses may warrant an immediate office referral, if the behavior is severe enough. Examples
include extreme disrespect, any act of violence or any type of bullying behavior.
Tardies
Ms. Jessup
English I
Room 225
Don’t be tardy. The natural consequence of being tardy is that you will miss the day’s agenda and any
warm-up activity, and you will have to make those up on your own time. The other consequences are as
follows:
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1st tardy: warning
2nd tardy: phone call home
3rd tardy: Thursday detention (3 hours after school)
Absences
It is extremely important that you not miss class. It is very easy to fall behind if you are absent. If there
is an emergency and you need to miss class, we will follow the RHS late work policy, which states that
you get the number of days were absent plus one more to get your late work turned in. So, for example:
1 Day absent = 2 days to turn in work
3 Days absent = 4 days to turn in work
YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR GETTING THE WORK YOU MISSED WHEN YOU WERE ABSENT. Remember
to check the ABSENT WORK BINDER on my desk to see what you missed that day, and see me outside of
class to collect any handouts or assignments. DO NOT ask me what you missed in the middle of class.
We will be busy and I won’t have time to give you the attention you need.
Questions? Don’t hesitate to ask! You can reach me any time by email: mjessup@dentonisd.org. My
phone number at school is 940-369-3062. My tutorial hours are:
Tutorials:
Every morning starting at 8:00 am. I generally do not hold after-school tutorials. If you really
need to come and see me about something and you absolutely cannot come in the morning,
please speak with me, and we will try to schedule something that works for both of us.
When you do attend tutorials, please sign in at the front of the room so I have a record of your
attendance.